Next Chinese NBA star? Yao Ming and Dwyane Wade keep eye on teenager Yang Hansen
- Yao introduces 18-year-old Yang to fellow former NBA star Dwyane Wade during CBA All-Star Weekend
- Wade offers advice on what it may take to reach the promised land of the NBA, reportedly urging Yang to work on his strength and stamina
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Former Houston Rockets player Yao, now president of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), introduced 18-year-old Yang Hansen to NBA Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade, who was in Xiamen for the CBA All-Star Weekend.
Wade, who in recent days made appearances in Macau and Hong Kong, reportedly praised Yang’s abilities, telling Yang he had watched some of his games while giving the teenager some advice on what it may take to reach NBA standard.
The three-time NBA champion was said to have urged Yang, of Qingdao Eagles, to continue working on his body strength and stamina so as to have more hope of playing in the North American league.
Standing at 7ft 1in (2.16 metres), the centre was relatively unknown until last summer, when he averaged 12.6 points, 10.4 rebounds, 4.7 assists and five blocks for China at the Fiba U19 World Cup, and was selected for the team of the tournament in Hungary.
The renowned Chinese basketball commentator Su Qun has suggested Yang may not be ready for the next NBA draft in June, and should spend a “couple more seasons” in the CBA first.
However, former NBA star Stephon Marbury, who has applied to Hong Kong’s talent recruitment scheme amid a brain drain in the city, expressed his optimism about the rising star.
“I think he can play in the NBA,” the two-time NBA All-Star said. “I think he has to work on his strength, but he has the footwork, he has the touch, he is smart on the basketball court.
“He is probably one of the best big men after Yao, Wang Zhizhi and Yi Jianlian. He is definitely the next big guy.”
An ever-starter for Qingdao in his debut season, Yang has averaged 15.6 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.3 blocks over 39 games.
Emerging as one of the CBA’s most notable rookies, Yang was selected in the North Conference starting line-up for Sunday’s CBA All-Star match.
The towering Shandong-born centre has been suggested as a possible pick for the 2025 or 2026 NBA draft. Some observers, though, say that Yang lacks speed and mobility, and that improving his overall athleticism is a must.
Chinese basketball fans were cautious about Yang’s future, too, especially after China last week lost to Japan for the first time since the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, 88 years ago. The Japanese won a Fiba Asia Cup qualifier 76-73.
“I am not slandering our own player,” a comment on Weibo read. “But if they could not beat Japan and averaged only 15 points in the CBA, how can he perform in the NBA?”
“The Chinese men’s basketball team has seen no successors in the post-Yi Jianlian era, everyone is just a flash in the pan,” read another comment.
A Weibo user from Guangdong said it may require “huge capital” to push Yang on to a career across the Pacific, following in the footsteps of Yao, whom the Rockets selected with the first pick of the 2002 NBA draft.
“Of course, Yao’s own effort was indispensable, but [people who helped to develop him] actually spent a lot of money,” he wrote. “It’s rare to find [that opportunity], and not every team can lay their plans around a Chinese player.”
